Incorrect transfer from SSE to OVO results in massive bills

JayB71

Hello,

On 14/09/2022 we migrated form SSE to OVO as part of OVO's purchase of SSE.  Our debt to SSE was just £378.93, of which £4.74 of this was for electric).  As of today, our outstanding debt has rocketed to over £6,243 and has yet to be resolved.

We checked our account on 20/09/2022 and was shocked to find our running debt was over £1,500 (less than a week from our transfer.  We checked online to discover that they had used a reading of 0 for the opening read on 14/09/2022 with a reading of 4249 just ONE DAY later!  The SSE bill used an estimated closing read of 17894, which is in line with the reads used previously.  The following is our reads history for electric that is available on their site (so missing many of the reads we provided).


Part of the issue is that they seem to think we have a (functioning) Smart meter, but we do not.  The meter is of the SMETS1 type (I work in the industry at a DC agent), which was fitted by E prior to us moving to SSE.  When we swapped to SSE the Smart functionality of the meter was lost and we were providing manual reads to SSE to bill us on.  OVO are somehow managing to read the meter, but it can't possibly be ours, as the readings we have our 18000+ while OVO's are within the 4000s.  They are now getting reads daily, so we are now unable to provide manual reads via the website.  Our first bill was over £1,500 and our second is over £6,100.

We chased what was happening with the investigation on 18/10/2022 only to be told nothing had happened since our original call.  They then raised a dispute and an investigation.  We got an email a few days later with some questions around our meter, although those did not address the fact the meter was one of the original Smart meters.  We answered the questions anyway, but also explained what the actual problem was, along with our final SSE bill (and closing read) and a spreadsheet I had put together with all reads provided, highlighting the reads that should be being used.  We were then told it would take another 45 days to resolve.  Meanwhile our debt is going up, but we don't know what our actual debt is.

I chased again on the 16/11/2022 and was basically told we would have to wait for the investigation to complete.  I asked if our direct debit could still change during an ongoing investigation and they said it can, so we're now worried our DD could change to something we cannot afford.  At this point I decide to raise an official complaint with them, although not even had confirmation they have received it, never mind an answer.  The complaint basically reiterated the above, along with the email that had the evidence attached, including photos of our meters.

It seems that we are not the only people this has affected, as a quick Google search finds plenty of complaints of a similar nature and there is also a recent article in The Guardian (I had a link, but I can't post it as only just joined).

All we want to do is highlight this issue that many people are facing and ask if there is enough to investigate with OVO or if there is anything else we can do in the mean time.

Cheers,

Jay.

Jyana

Can you check your meter to see if they have read a different Rate on it, this happens occasionally. i.e. they pick up Reading 01 or 02, rather than the total reading. 

ariarnia

hi jay. 

i'm not sure what's going on there. definitely looks confusing. i know type 1 smart meters can start to communicate again if the have the software update to type 2. but that wouldn't explain the wonky readings. hopefully someone else can help with that bit. 

I just wanted to say that 8 weeks after your initial complaint you can escalate it to the ombudsman. you dont have to wait for ovo to finish there investigation or give you a deadlock letter. the ombudsman will give them time to put together a case (at least then it's a fixed deadline) and might say they need to do things like test the meter but then you know its an impartial thing that they do need that time.

aaiiee

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2022/nov/23/uk-energy-customers-bills-ovo-sse

Link to Guardian article

JayB71

Thanks for the replies.

I did think to check the other registers on the meter and the closest reading is around 300 units less, so can't be that (it would be higher than the read Ovo are using).

I'm not sure if it's possible to update the software remotely for a meter that hasn't been communicating in the past (while we were with SSE).  I believe this would require an engineer visit.  if it has been updated though, it's clearly botched.

I've also checked the Ombudsmen page and it says that we have to raise an official complaint first, which I've only just done.  I don't believe our original query counts as day 1.  Having said that, we've still had no confirmation of them receiving the complaint.

There is now an article in The Mirror, so it would appear this is affecting a lot of people.  I know someone else that is about to transfer so I've asked them to let me know how they get on.

Just rather worrying if they start chasing us or raising our Direct Debit.  I know I can cancel the DD, but reluctant to do it right now because of the help we're getting towards the cost of energy from the government.  I assume they would need to inform us before they change our DD and take payment, so if they do that I will cancel it then.

Thanks for your feedback.

t0rt0ise

If it's affecting a lot of people they obviously know about it and aren't really expecting you to pay thousands. They have a general computer problem that they need to sort out. Why not give them some time to sort it out.

JayB71

Sorry, but we've already been asked how we intend to pay, and the two articles referenced above also state that they've been asked to pay as well.  People aren't going to wait it out with thousands of pounds being demanded from them that they simply do not owe.

The SSE migrations have been going on for almost a year now, and a Google search will find similar stories throughout that time.  It is a simple computer problem in that data they are holding for consumers' meters is incorrect, but they aren't doing a lot to fix it.  Readings can be amended, meter configurations can be amended and removed from a reading cycle until the meter issue has been checked and fixed.  If they did that, then consumers would be able to provide their actual reads (which they cannot do currently because their portal says their meter is being read fine and they don't need to), so that correct bills can be worked out.  They refused to do this, despite all evidence pointing to the fact that they are wrong.

Sorry if that came over as harsh, it was not my intention.  I just have more of a perspective and insight in to how the industry is (supposed) to work, as I work within this sector.